Until the Light Takes Us

I’ll keep it short and to the point. It’s a great documentary if you go into it with the right mindset. Know that you will be hearing, mainly, from two of the most known/respected/infamous contributors to the Norwegian black metal scene. There are other personalities that add some flavor, but it’s mostly Fenriz and Varg who make this worth a watch. You get to listen to their take on things and hear some of their insights into that time. It may not be a perfect documentary of black metal itself, but it is a great watch if the movement, and some of the lore surrounding it, interests you. The filmmakers set out to document these personalities, not challenge them. I’d much prefer this than watching Lords of Chaos. I also recommend you check out Necrobutcher’s “The Death Archives: Mayhem 1984-94.” I also prefer my corn flakes crispy, not soft.

I cannot say enough good things about Until the Light Takes Us. Black metal is such a maligned, complex, and misunderstood genre that I would imagine it was difficult at best to sit down and try to make a comprehensive film about its origins and present condition. This documentary succeeds, and how. Instead of being pompous, overblown and self-consciously "scary", as other efforts have been, it steps back and takes a subdued, neutral look at the genre from birth to modern day, mostly letting the musicians themselves spin the story. As other reviewers have said, this is not a typical "rockumentary" and very little concert footage is shown; this is more along the lines of an art film. The soundtrack involves less black metal and more mellow Scandinavian electronica, which to be honest I was not wild about, but it's a minor point. The conversations with Fenriz, Varg and (to a lesser extent) Frost were thoughtful, revealing, and sometimes intense. The understated detachment of Hellhammer makes an excellent impact presented in such a way. All these conversations are punctuated with footage of the majestic Norwegian wilderness and suffuses the film with a dense, heavy mood. The second disc is full of deleted scenes and a "black metal 101" class with Fenriz, which is really charismatic and fun. Basically, this film is clearly a labor of love, and it is intelligent, beautiful, and extremely worthwhile. If you're going to find yourself a good, solid documentary about black metal, this is the one to pick.

This DVD is essential. I honestly shouldn't write more than a paragraph or so here, because to do so would be to either judge or provide facts and/or opinions which could be used to form judgments, and that is exactly what the directors here go to extremes NOT to do in their documentary. You will not hear a narrator. You will not hear the interviewers ask questions or provide comments. You will not hear background music composed for the sole purpose of this documentary. You WILL hear from a small handful of Norway's "fathers" (for lack of a better term) of black metal, in particularly Varg Vikernes (Burzum), Fenriz (Darkthrone), Faust (Emperor), and Hellhammer (Mayhem). You WILL hear some music composed by these bands, particularly Darkthrone. You WILL see original newscasts of the misunderstood acts. You WILL hear contrasting opinions on topics such as Euronymous's shop, the muder of Euronymous, the purposes behind the church burnings, and Americanization. Rarely does the public get such a straight-from-the-horses-mouth perspective on subjects that have spawned such controversy. This is especially true in the case of black metal as you will hear the "fathers'" feelings towards the rise of Satanic black metal that followed the movement in the time of the "fathers." On a final note, I strongly urge buyers to get the two-disc edition. With it, you are getting more than TWICE the material on the one-disc version, and to be frank, one who is interested enough in this subject matter can't get enough of it.

This documentary is a beautiful example of how to tell an insightful, menacing, dark and sorrowful story. These stories, however, are not fiction. They are real things, that happened to real people. That's what makes it either really tragic, or really great. This goes from the rise of black metal as a statement of rebellion and youth, to what many consider the fall of black metal, into what is now almost commercial or a "scene." What was once brutal and terrifying, and almost mythical, became accessible to everyone for any reason. It has become so accessible, that we now have parodies of the legacy, and (dare I say) POSERS who are undoubtedly destroying the obelisk of what black metal really is. Rare interviews with Varg of Burzum, Fenriz of Darkthrone, and Hellhammer of Mayhem (among others) make the stories told even more compelling. This documentary is a true DOCUMENTARY. A collective history told by those who lived through it, and are around today to tell the tales. Everything from friendship, to hatred, suicide to murder, troubles to triumph, and the story of a rebellion that became an army. Ignore what you thought you knew of black metal. It's not all awesome... sometimes it was tragic.

This is just about the best documentary about black metal among many really bad ones. It gets past the hype and outrage, and into the true philosophy of black metal. Fenriz remains a one man historian of all things black metal. To me the proper context of Nordic black metal is as a modern vehicle for the appreciation and preservation of pre-Christian, pagan culture in the Nordic countries. This doc gets to much of the heart of this issue. In centuries past, Christian armies ran rampant and ultraviolent over vulnerable, peaceful pagan cultures in the same way that radical religious and political ideologies do today. The Nordic church burnings during the 1990's were radical and violent but those burnt Christian churches were themselves built upon the ruins of pagan landmarks that were trampled on. Some people felt it was a way of symbolically reclaiming their culture and paying tribute to their old gods - gods which made sense to them. Violent desecration was the only way to get it on the front pages of every newspaper in Scandinavia for months on end. The best of 1990's black metal interpreted this history in a way that was very palatable to the disenfranchised youth of those times. It wasn't so much an endorsement of Satan as it was an indictment and rejection of a violent Christian god that showed no respect for centuries old pagan cultures. In this context Satan is not a demonic entity but rather a metaphor for human self-determination in harmony with the forces of nature. I don't think that a lot of these bands really spent much quality time reciting cryptic incantations and burning black candles (well, maybe Gaahl does), but they do appreciate the bleak beauty of their homelands - and they want to keep them that way. Once one has gotten past the makeup, the fashion and the posing, one can see that the very best of black metal really does have a philosophy that deserves respect.

I've read people complain that this film was not about "black metal". They want the glossy magazine version of Black Metal that Varg and Fenris spend the film lamenting over. They're the people that the ridiculous "Black Metal" modern art show featured in the film is targetted towards. They like Satanic imagery and gloomy aesthetics and little else. This film is about the rape of an entire culture, pagan Norse culture, that was replaced with a foreign God. It's the saddest film I've seen in a long while and I just watched Dear Zachary. Fenris cuts an impressive yet desperate figure as he literally wanders through Oslo, slumped shoulders under a heavy weather beaten leather jacket. It perfectly juxtaposes the commercial depression on display from "Frost" of the Death Metal boy band Satyricon. Varg is a flash of maddening genius as he recounts the way in which he dispatched of a supposed deadly threat. The world through the eyes of the rebellious teen, turned killer, turned Neo Nazi, and finally somber adult with clarity of vision and purpose, is the highlight of the film. When Varg and Fenris speak of the desecration of the Norse spirit by ancient Christians and modern Judeo-Christian sycophancy, it hits hard in your soul. A must watch for actual fans.

Very interesting. A view of black metal based on interviews with two of its finest creators, Varg and Fenriz, with snippets from others as well. Hellhammer is always funny (Euronymous was a commie and thus deserved to die - probably the best insight of the whole film). The most interesting aspect of the movie is the how free Varg seems, despite being in prison, and how imprisoned Fenriz seems despite being free. Varg seems to have embraced and accepted the past and thus is liberated in mind and spirit; Fenriz seems to be haunted and trapped by the past - unable to make an album that doesn't rehash something from 20 years ago and financially trapped by the meagre lifestyle of a musician in an underground genre - and is trapped both mentally and spiritually as well as physically by the routine and the demands of work. The bonus material is quite nice. Fenriz seems to come alive during his 'history of metal' lecture and really looks to be enjoying himself as he is engrossed in his chalkboard flowchart of metal influences.

It really goes over the Norwegian black metal scene pretty well. I wish they'd focus on black metal in other countries as well.

Excelente!! Me trouxe várias reflexões sobre a cena black metal, recomendo mesmo para não fãs do metal extremo.

Good documentary and music \m/

A great documentary about the main players + the history/ideology behind the creation of Norwegian Black Metal in the late 80's and early 90's. There has always been something morbidly thrilling about the Black Metal pioneers, particularly Mayhem. This DVD succeeds in bringing the BM scene out of the darkness and contains interviews with exactly those people that, as a fan of the genre, you would want to be interviewed. Even if you aren't a fan, it is still a fascinating insight into the freaks, sociopaths, geniuses, rejects and murderers responsible for some of the most extreme - and best - music ever created. You get to listen to the real world-view of Varg Vikernes, the creator of Burzum, a man who is so intelligent and well informed about world events that it takes your breath away. And you get to meet the shadowy Fenriz of Darkthrone, who, in his own way, is just as complex and troubled as Vikernes. This talented, enigmatic duo are the main focus of the documentary but you wouldn't want it any other way. Between them, they sum up everything that is necessary about Black Metal. The drummer from Mayhem has his say as does a pixel-blurred Faust. Frost from Satyricon even makes a typically bizarre and unearthly appearance. There's even a 101 introduction to Black Metal by Fenriz. Shame that Marduk didn't get a look-in though. Or Mysticum for that matter. But hey. Along the way, you learn not only about Black Metal, its influences, motivations etc., but also something about the Norwegian psyche in general and the power struggles that arise in any underground/artistic movement.

Increible, no puedo creer que tenga esta película finalmente, thanks

Un reportage sombre, froid, païen et effrayant ! Après de l'avoir visionné sur You Tube pendant des années, je l'ai enfin acheté en DVD et j'en suis très satisfait !! Bon, ma première surprise sont le fait que les sous-titres sont en Allemand, mais ce n'ai pas grave ! Ce DVD, nous livre bien la vérité sur le suicide de Dead, les incendies d'églises et le meurtre d'Euronymous ! À regarder ce film dans le noir, à la lueur des bougies de votre autel païen !!